Waking Innocence
by Vesper Rose
Summary: "His slowing heart swelled with warmth, and he mustered the remnants of his strength to pull the corners of his lips up into a smile." Zero Kiryu has somehow found his reason for living, but with it comes the Council and Association on his tail. KxZ/ZxK
1. Prologue

:O I finally rewrote the prologue! :D Yayyyy.

I like this one MUCH better than the first, and I'm soooo glad I had some time to write it out. I hate how life gets in the way of my updating. -.- This weekend I'll hopefully be updating _Twisted Insanity_, _Fallen Humanity_, and (surprise!/finally!) _Somewhere Only We Know_. Later on, when I'm finished writing everything I might go back and rewrite SOWK. I feel like it moves to fast. e.e Also, for those that read _Alice_... I WILL update it. I was halfway done with the next chapter and then my computer died, and like an idiot I didn't save it, so now I have to write it ALL over again. D:

But I will never abandon any story I start. :) It may take me a while to update and all that, but I will never, ever abandon any story. :D

Anyway, I know it's short, but it _is _only the prologue so...enjoy! :D xD

PS. This is rated M for later chapters.

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><p>He didn't know what he was doing; standing in front of the Council's building. He was angry, that much he knew as he gripped his gun tighter. But something was wrong, he noticed. While it was <em>him<em> that was standing there, staring up at the building with a fierce hatred that even he had never known he was capable of, it wasn't him.

Zero Kiryu watched confusingly as he watched himself dash towards the building's entrance. Yet, he didn't move. So was he dreaming? He certainly had to be. Otherwise he wouldn't be watching himself.

Zero followed himself, eyes widening as his other self shot at anyone who came at him. But he saw a problem with that, too. They were vampires – _nobles_. They had powers that he didn't have and wasn't immune to. And yet, they weren't using them against him. It was almost as if they _wanted _him there – to go wherever it was he was heading to.

He continued to follow his other self, immensely confused as to why he was even there. The other Zero continued to fire his Bloody Rose, not killing them, but leaving them wounded enough to stop them from stopping him. It seemed that he didn't care about anyone else but his destination.

The other Zero raced up a flight of stairs, quickly scurrying down the hall without so much as a glance. How was it that he knew where he was going? Zero thought, following hesitantly. This was his first time being in the Council's headquarters…wasn't it?

Laughter ripped him from his reverie and made his step falter. He quickly steadied himself, and followed after the other Zero. As they moved closer, the maniacal laughter grew louder, and he could hear that in between the laughter, someone was murmuring something. Closer and closer they got, and the murmuring was becoming more and more coherent.

In an instant all was silent. The other Zero had stopped running, but he had become tense. His knuckles were going white.

The smell of blood wafted through the air, and it was nothing like Zero had smelled before. It was so sweet smelling, that it almost made his teeth hurt, but managed to make his throat to burn just a bit. But it didn't appeal to him as much as he thought it would – or it _should_ have as the smell of the blood obviously belonged to someone above his vampire status.

Crying echoed throughout hall, and the other Zero zipped through the hall once more. The crying grew louder and the building began to tremble.

The other Zero burst through a set of doors and the crying immediately stopped. As Zero reached the doors, the scene turned black.

The crying turned into his screaming. The sound of something ripping filled his ears. While he couldn't make out what the voices he heard were saying, he knew they were speaking to him – _commanding _him. He was trembling violently, clawing at anything he got his hands on. He twisted and turned, struggling against the hands that held him down. He choked on something warm… But everything was tainted with black. He couldn't see… _Why couldn't he see?_ What was going on?

_Snap!_

A sharp pain shot through his spine, and he could feel no more. His limbs became lead, and he stopped moving. The noises were slowly fading as was the world.

He was _dying_. Zero knew that, but he also knew that he couldn't give in to death. He had to keep fighting. He was _needed_ by the one person that he had given his life to.

Somebody whispered something into his ear. He didn't know what exactly was said, but he was happy. Incredibly happy.

His slowing heart swelled with warmth, and he mustered the remnants of his strength to pull the corners of his lips up into a smile.


	2. 1

Gasp. The first chapter. Woot... I think. xD I personally feel like this chapter is pointless...well the second part anyway. 'Cause the first part is pretty important. It was supposed to be longer, but it's 5 AM and I'm really tired. On top of that, I think continuing the chapter would've made me write out a whole bunch of unnecessary crap. But...sorry it's short! D:

Just so you know, nothing actually happens in this chapter...or the next I think. But things should start picking up by the third chapter. :)

I had been planning on writing the next part to _Fallen Humanity (FH)_, but this wouldn't leave my head, so I just _had_ to write it. :D But FH will be next! Cause I can't get that out of my head either. And when that happens, I can't write anything else because my mind is SO focused on that one thing. Is anyone else like that? Or is it just me? o.o

Hm...I feel like I'm forgetting to tell you guys something... Oh well. :) I'll remember sometime...in the not-so-near future. xD

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><p>Zero woke with a start, his amethyst orbs automatically giving his room a glance in panic. So it had been a dream… But it had felt so real. He had felt everything...<p>

He continued eyeing his room before he sighed in relief and shifted so that he was on his back. He winced slightly, but shrunk back into his bed, covering himself with the covers that he had tossed aside while he was dreaming.

He briefly glanced at the clock on his nightstand. He had slept his way through the first three periods of school – it was lunch already. He saw no reason for even attending today. His body was rather sore from the last mission he had…which had been almost three days ago.

Zero shook his head, brushing it off his shoulder. He _had_ fought four level Es singlehandedly, and to his surprise it was anything but easy. He shut his eyes, letting the dream play in his mind again.

Zero rarely had dreams, and when he did it was usually about Shizuka's attack if not the years he had spent under the Headmaster's care when he was a child. The dream had to mean something. He just had to figure out what. He thought over the dream again, trying to figure out the deeper meaning. He could _feel_ it there, but he couldn't find the words to actually describe it. It felt like…

A knocking interrupted his thoughts. He rolled his eyes. Yuuki sure had a way of showing up at the right moment.

"Zero Kiryu, I know you're in there. And so help me if you don't open this door, I'll kick it down," Yuuki shouted from the other side of the door.

"And not only will the Chairman force you to eat something of his as punishment for breaking his door, you will have the _pleasure_ of invading my privacy and seeing me naked," Zero retorted. He wasn't really naked – he had shorts on. But he knew it would stop her from breaking in.

In the hall, Yuuki's nose scrunched in disgust and she flinched away from the door. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen Zero naked before, but they were kids when she had. She huffed in annoyance, "Alright, but if you're not out in ten minutes, I'm going to tell Headmaster that you missed two days of school."

The hunter shook his head. He knew that the Headmaster really wouldn't care. Zero kept his grades up despite his sleeping in class and constant skipping. But he also knew that if he didn't get up, Yuuki probably _would_ break down the door with her knocking. He flung his legs over the side of the bed, wincing again. His body was really in pain…

He shuffled toward the sink and mirror head had in the corner of his room. The Chairman had specifically had this room built for him, due to the fact that he had been changing and needed as much privacy as possible from the other Day Class students.

Zero yawned and rubbed his eyes, leaning over to prepare his toothbrush. His eyes were focused on the running water. He spit out the tooth soap and rinsed his mouth with water, his eyes danced over the mirror and back to the sink.

He tensed, spitting the water out and glancing at himself in the mirror again. _What the hell?_

His face covered with blotches and his lips were incredibly swollen and he could feel them bruising over the already visible bruises. His eyes lowered to his neck. Large hickeys covered it, leaving almost no room for his skin to show. And underneath he could see that his neck was nearly gnawed to his bone. The lower his eyes went, the more damage he saw. His body was covered in bruises – most already there and the others forming. Not to mention the other bite marks that were nearly hidden by them.

"What the hell?" He repeated out loud.

He remembered the fight with the level Es being slightly more difficult than usual, but he _knew _they hadn't done this much damage. Zero was left in a state of bemusement as he replayed the fight. Neither of them had gone anywhere _near_ his neck, let alone his face.

"What. The. Hell?" Zero murmured for the third time. He stumbled over to his bed, sitting down as his eyes continuously roamed over his bruised body. The focused on a part of his legs that looked slightly darker than the rest of his body. He lightly ran his fingers over the area, eyes widening when he realized that they were indents. He lifted his shorts a bit, finding that there were multiple sets of the same indents on his thighs.

Zero shook his head in disbelief. How he had managed to end up in such a state, he didn't know. He was surprised that he wasn't caked with blood. Perhaps his sluggish vampire healing had allowed his wounds to close before he bled to death…

He sat on the bed, once again running over the fight with the level Es. The marks on his legs were probably from the degraded vampires, but even so, Zero shouldn't have had _that_ many marks on him. As for the others, he couldn't recall.

The day after the mission, he had skipped class, in favor of spending the day sleeping in his bed. The day after, he had skipped class once again, but that time it was to go into town. That same night, he was forced to attend a gala one of the noble vampires had thrown – by order of the Association, of course. But that was it. He hadn't done anything physically to gain such injuries.

"Three more minutes Zero!" Yuuki shouted.

Was she still there?

Zero rolled his eyes, raking a hand through his hair (flinching when he saw more of the indents on his arms and wincing). There was absolutely no way he could go out looking the way he did. He could hide his body under his clothes, but he couldn't hide his blotched face and puffy bruised lips. And his vampire healing wasn't the greatest, seeing as how he wasn't a born vampire or a level C. So it would, at least, take a day just for his face to heal – sans the lips. His lips would take another day.

"I'm staying in my room."

He heard Yuuki huff once more and a thud follow after shortly. He guessed she had stomped her foot the way she usually did when she was annoyed with him. "Zero! You haven't been to school for two days!" She paused to chew on her lip and rest her forehead against his door, lowering her voice. "I'm worried about you… You've either been gone or in your room. Are you sick?" She paused again. "Are you…hungry?"

Zero allowed a small smile to grace his face. It was so like Yuuki to check on him. And it was so like her to be – or at least _try_ to be – a self sacrificing heroine. But it hurt him to know that all she thought he wanted from her was her blood. "I'm fine, Yuuki."

She lifted her head as if Zero had opened the door and pet her on her head. "Are you sure? Everyone is at lunch now, so we should be alo-"

"Yuuki," Zero warned. Really the girl just knew what buttons to push sometimes.

Yuuki frowned, stepping away from the door. She eyed it; almost waiting for Zero to open the door, but when he didn't she turned to leave. "All right. But if you need me later, I'll either be at the Chairman's house or patrolling."

Zero hummed in response, listening as Yuuki's footsteps sounded throughout the hall. He glanced at the clock. A half an hour more and he would be able to sneak away to the Chairman's house to get something to eat. Yuuki would be back in class by then.

His stomach growled at the thought of food. "Yeah, yeah," Zero muttered. "I'll get you fed."

He lay back slowly, wincing and hissing silently in the process. His backside was probably the only body part that was in pain beyond recognition. He'd had to stop for a minute, blinking away the black spots that was slowly clouding his vision. Eventually, he was at a full laying state and he relaxed his body into the bed.

Really, all he had wanted to do at that moment was sleep, but another growl came from his stomach, fiercer than the first. He shut his eyes in an effort to ignore the growls, but was forced to get up (very slowly) from his bed and get ready for his short trip to the Headmaster's house.

He silently prayed that he wouldn't run into the Chairman.


	3. 2

I am soooooo sorry for neglecting (well...not really. They're in the works) my other stories. D': I'll update them as soon as I can! It's just since the chapters in this story are shorter (as this will be a short fic...I hope), it's faster and easier to write and upload them. Plus, the idea just won't go away until I write it down. -.- Really, it's rather annoying. I mean...I'd like to finish writing _Alice_, _FH_, _TI_, etc. -.-

Anyway, this is basically another pointless chapter. For the most part anyway. Some parts _are_ important for future chapters. :)

Um..um..um..um...I feel like I'm forgetting to say something... Oh well. Enjoy! Things should start picking up next chappie. :D

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><p>He'd opted to wearing a hoodie, despite the warm weather outside. It was the only piece of clothing he owned that covered his face, but allowed him to roam about the school grounds without being noticed. Though he doubted anyone would notice him what with the Night Class in their dorms, sleeping, and the Day Class' lunch had ended.<p>

Exiting the Sun Dorms, Zero flinched slightly. It was hotter than he had expected… But he only needed to get to the Chairman's house, which was a little ways further from the prior Moon Dorms.

Zero slipped into the woods surrounding the school area, hoping that there would be less sun there. While he was correct, he hadn't expected for it to be _hotter_ than the non-wooded areas.

His stomach growled violently, seemingly echoing off of the trees. He scowled, hissing, "Shut up! I'm going to eat!"

Zero shuffled throughout the woods, constantly hissing at his growling stomach. He felt rather stupid for reprimanding his own stomach, but he was tired and would've loved to sleep more. Not to mention his aching body – it hurt to be standing upright.

Zero sighed in relief as the Chairman's house came into view. He never thought he'd be that glad to see the house he grew up in. His stomach flipped in anticipation.

Steadily making his way toward the front door, the hunter tapped into his vampire abilities. As far as he could pick up, the Chairman wasn't in the house, or anywhere in the area. Deeming it safe, he entered the house, shaking his head.

He never understood the Headmaster's mentality. Who left their house door unlocked with vampires around? It was for that reason that Zero never bothered to view the Chairman as anything but his _temporary_ caretaker.

The hunter made his way to the kitchen, immediately planning his meal. It had to be done quickly, so that his stomach could already be quiet. But everything he thought of utterly repulsed him.

His stomach gave another nasty growl, and Zero wrapped his arm around it. "What the _hell_ do you want?"

Another growl and hiss sounded.

The hunter settled with something simple – a sandwich. He ignored his happily churning anatomy as he retrieved the ingredients. While it wasn't exactly what he wanted, it would stand as an excellent substitute. And he really couldn't wait anymore…

He gulfed down one sandwich, already making another. He swallowed the second. And soon he was eating the third. The fourth. The fifth. He'd only stopped when he ran out of bread, cheese, and ham.

Zero frowned, staring at the empty packages. He tossed them in the trash and began rummaging around the kitchen for something else to eat. Normally, he would've been full with only two sandwiches, but he was still _very_ hungry.

He smiled ever so slightly when he found a package of cookies in the cupboard. Without any hesitation, he ripped the package pen, stuffing a whole cookie into his mouth.

He let out a very un-Zero-like moan and munched on another cookie. Zero was never one for sweets, but he couldn't help himself. The cookies tasted much too good…

Before he knew it, the package was empty. He threw it with the rest of the empty packages and once again began rummaging around the kitchen.

At this point, Zero was dumbfounded. He didn't know _why_ he was so hungry. It almost felt like the food was going right through him.

"Kiryuu-kun?"

Zero froze as he began reaching for a bag of pastries on the counter. Why hadn't he sensed the Chairman approaching?

Zero quickly retracted his hand, instead opening another cupboard for a teapot. He shuffled to the sink, filled it with water, and set it on the stove. He turned on the flame, clearing his throat. "Yes?"

The Chairman's questioning voice quickly transformed into the cheery one that he normally used. Zero could almost see the beaming smile on the older male's face, though he kept his position – turned around, staring at the teapot. Could it heat up any slower?

"It makes me so happy that my son has come to visit me ~!" The retired hunter chirped. He edged closer to Zero, with his arms wide open in anticipation of a hug. Unfortunately, Zero managed to dodge him and he struggled to regain his balance as he tried to avoid touching the flaming stove. But Zero caught him by his shirt, and pulled him backwards so that he was standing upright.

Kaien sighed in relief, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. He turned to look at Zero with his eyes full of sparkles, and tears perched at his lid. But the hunter wasn't beside him…

A chair scrapped the floor, and Zero slowly lowered himself into it. He clenched his teeth at the immense pain that shot through his rear and up through his spine. _What the hell happened?_

After a pregnant pause of silence, another scrapping of a chair echoed through the kitchen. Zero lowered his head, his eyes roaming around the surface of the table. He hoped the Chairman wouldn't ask him anything. He wasn't in the mood for small talk.

There was a cacophony of rustling and then the smell of something sweet wafted toward Zero, making his mouth water and his stomach give a small groan of want. Slowly, the hunter looked up at the Chairman through his eyelashes. The older male was munching on the same cookies Zero had been eating moments before.

His mouth was watering excessively as he watched the Chairman eat the delicious snack that Zero was craving. He licked his lips and cleared his throat once more. "Headmaster," he croaked awkwardly. "M-may I have one?"

Kaien blinked. Once. Twice. Zero _never_ asked for sweets. "Well, of course," he smiled, pushing the package toward the young hunter. He blinked once more as Zero snatched a cooking from the package and shoved it into his mouth. He watched as Zero shut his eyes, relishing in the taste that was the cookie. "Kiryuu-kun… Are you… feeling al-"

The teapot whistled and Kaien leapt up, rushing toward the stove. He shut off the stove, drifting to the nearest cupboard to retrieve two cups. He poured the water in, and pulled two tea bags from a jar on the counter. He steadily made his way over to the table, placing one of the cups in front of Zero and then sitting down with his cup. The tea was sweet enough that he didn't need to add sugar.

Zero gripped the cup, carefully and took a sip. It wasn't until then that he noticed how parched he was, and he guzzled the rest down, ignoring the scorching heat that burned his tongue and his throat. He was careful not to tip his head back, though, which made it a little difficult for him to get the last few drops.

Kaien watched Zero, suspicion evident in his honey colored orbs. "Zero," Kaien started. He bit back his smile as Zero froze. He never used Zero's first name unless something was serious. "Is there something that you're not telling me?"

"Excuse me?" Zero replied, slightly confused.

"Are you cold?" Kaien asked.

Zero cursed silently. He'd hoped the Chairman wouldn't ask questions. He was somewhat of a ditz sometimes – why couldn't he have been one at that moment. "No… The sun was just…bothering me."

Kaien's eyebrow rose in surprise. The sun never bothered Zero. Was his vampire side beginning to overtake his hunter side, then? As he opened his mouth to mention Zero's absence from school, Zero shot out of his seat, grumbling something about being tired and wanting to take a nap.

As the front door slammed, Kaien frowned. He didn't like the growing pool of heat he felt in the pit of his stomach.

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><p>Zero sighed, shrinking back into his bed. He nuzzled his head against his pillow and shut his eyes. It was days like this where Zero was actually <em>glad<em> that he was a partially vampire – it gave him excuses when he didn't want to deal with the Headmaster's inquiries. Even if it did make him – and Yuuki – think he was thirsty.

The hunter contemplated the next couple days that he would spending in his room and figuring out a way around the Chairman's schedule so that he could eat.

Gradually, and without his notice, he slipped into a deep sleep.

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><p><em><strong>Elsewhere<strong>_

"Are you sure you want to do this, mistress?" The servant asked. Her voice tainted with concern. She really couldn't help it – her mistress meant everything to her and by doing this… It could ultimately result in her slipping into a coma. "You're much too fra-"

Her mistress whipped around with narrowed eyes. "Are you insinuating that I'm _weak_?"

The servant blinked, rapidly shaking her head. "That's not what I meant at all, mistress. I'm just concerned for your health."

The pureblood's face softened, and she gave her servant a reassuring smile. "Thank you. But I'll be fine."

The servant nodded, curtseying before exiting the room.

The pureblood turned to look outside her bedroom window, her golden hues fazing up at the moon. She smiled, twirling a lock of her hair between her fingers.

She gave a small chuckle that could be mistaken for the tinkling of bells. "Be prepared, Kiryuu Zero."

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><p>Ah, yes. I remembered. The pureblood is <em>not<em> Maria, just so you know. She's an OC that makes a bigger appearance next chapter and in future chapters. ;)

Technically, this story is AU as the Shizuka and Rido events have not taken place (and I can tell you right now, they will not). So Maria doesn't _really_ exist in this story. I mean, she does...just not here. xD She's roaming about the world or in her room. xD

Please keep that in mind. :D

And I apologize for any mistakes and if it's not detailed enough. I'm still working on that as a writer... ^^;


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